Thanks to each and every one of you who supported or attended THRiVE 2015, making our statewide conference a tremendous success by every measure.

Over 350 people attended throughout the day, both members and future members. You can enjoy scores of photos, plus press coverage plus most of the power point presentations of the day on our THRiVE conference webpage.

We networked morning, noon and night.

We made valuable contacts and heard from experts in a wide variety of fields.

We spoke in one voice to the Governor, Secretaries and legislators about transformationally improving how the state supports bioscience commercialization in Virginia. Thanks to the many industry and university members of the Governor’s Working Groups and public servants who made that unique event possible.

Together, we assembled and celebrated the largest gathering ever of Virginians, harnessing the power of data science for the biomedical enterprise.

And we provided a forum for the leaders of the Northern Virginia bioscience community to come together, at this time of so much growth by individual organizations and companies.

Most importantly, by doing this well, we further developed opportunities to work together to create the future of bioscience in Virginia.

The Committee on Energy and Commerce released its 21st Century Cures Initiative discussion draft intended to accelerate the discovery, development and delivery of next generation modern medicine.

BIO, along with Virginia Bio, applaud the release of this discussion draft. Some welcome areas include: prioritizing placing patients at the center of the drug development process, spurring the development of therapies for the most prevalent conditions and encouraging the development of treatments focused on unmet medical needs. Support is also given in establishing a structured and transparent way to incorporate patient views into the development and regulatory review processes, both with respect to the patient input for benefit-risk assessments and use of patient experience data in regulatory decision-making.

Gov. McAuliffe Joins George Mason University to Launch Institute for Advanced Biomedical Research Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe recently joined George Mason University President Ángel Cabrera to launch the university’s Institute for Advanced Biomedical Research, a multidisciplinary center that will pursue some of the toughest medical questions facing society.

The FDA recently issued revisions to three draft guidance documents on biosimilar product development. The guidance documents were originally drafted in February 2012 following the 2010 passage of the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCI).

The National SBIR/STTR Conference and the 3rd annual National Innovation Summit and Showcase will be held in parallel with the 17th annual TechConnect World Conference, at the Gaylord Convention Center, June 14-17, 2015.

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer programs are highly competitive, encouraging small businesses to engage in Federal Research/Research and Development (R/R&D) work with potential for commercialization.

Rivanna Medical appointed John A. Williams as President and CEO. He replaces Will Mauldin, Ph.D., a co-founder of RIVANNA who remains as Chairman and Chief Technology Officer of the company.

Mr. Williams is a proven leader with distinguished success in building and selling publicly and privately held healthcare companies. He is known as a strong strategic and analytical thinker with a track record of developing new technologies to accelerate growth. His turnaround experience coupled with his ability to create and execute a long-term vision has consistently enhanced shareholder value. John has successfully led and exited a public company and has raised in excess of $80 million for the companies he has led.

Virginia Biotechnology Research Park is now the home to AmpliPhi BioSciences Corporation’s east coast operations in addition to housing their current research lab. Ampliphi, with research facilities in Sydney, Australia and cGMP manufacturing in Europe, is a global leader in the research and development of bacteriophage-based antibacterial therapies to treat multi-drug resistant bacterial infections. In March, the company successfully completed a $13 million financing to support upcoming human clinical trials targeting multi-drug resistant S. aureus including MRSA, which will be conducted at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research.

Patient Services, Inc. (PSI) recently earned a 4-star charity rating for the seventh consecutive year from Charity Navigator, the nation's largest charity evaluator.

PSI is committed to supporting people with expensive chronic illnesses and conditions through locating solutions with health insurance and assisting with premiums and prescription copayments to facilitate positive health and well-being. Our mission and work has been recognized by Charity Navigator as being executed in a fiscally exceptional manner, outperforming most other charities in America.

CEL-SCI Corporation has been authorized by the Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA) to commence patient enrollment for its ongoing Phase 3 trial of its investigational immunotherapy Multikine (Leukocyte Interleukin, Injection) in patients with advanced primary squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity/soft palate, a type of head and neck cancer. Italy is the 23rd country to authorize CEL-SCI’s Phase 3 trial for patient enrollment.

James Madison University (JMU) students enrolled in the Quality Management course this summer will receive first-hand industrial experience with their class being held at Cadence’s Virginia facility over the next four weeks. Students will examine the industrial work cell, as well as value stream mapping, line sequencing, and economic order quantity calculations -- all in an effort to help optimize the industrial work cell flow project.

As of May 19, 2015, the national transplant allocation system developed by United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) has coordinated 500,000 organ transplants from deceased donors in the United States since its beginning in October 1987. More than 250,000 recipients of these transplants are estimated to be surviving.

Health Diagnostic Laboratory, Inc has entered into a purchase agreement with GeneNews Limited and Cobalt Healthcare Consultants, Inc., pursuant to which GeneNews and Cobalt acquired HDL's thirty-three and one third percent (33 1/3%) ownership stake in their Innovative Diagnostic Laboratory, LLP joint-venture for an aggregate purchase price of US$4.0 million.

Combined with their prior investments in IDL, GeneNews and Cobalt now each own a 50% equity interest in the joint-venture.

Inova acknowledged today a $50 million gift from developer and philanthropist Dwight Schar launching the Inova Dwight and Martha Schar Cancer Institute. The center will anchor the new Inova Center for Personalized Health recently established in Fairfax, providing a platform for the development and application of advances in cancer treatment and personalized medicine through genomics.

For most people, a list of "teenage activities” includes sports practices, drivers ed, and trips to the mall with friends. Take a look at the news and you’ll find that today’s generation of teens are also focusing their energies on solving our world’s most challenging health, food, and environment problems.

The BioGENEius Challenge exemplifies this public service trend. Each year a group of elite high school students from across the nation are dedicating their time to science innovation and competing in a prestigious competition that recognizes outstanding research in biotechnology by investigating some of the most complex issues facing our society today.

On April 23 at the statewide THRiVE 2015 Conference, Virginia Bio unveiled the first generation of an exciting new resource, a statewide map of bioscience in Virginia. The VA Life Science Map is publicly available at all times and can be found on the Virginia Bio website. The map is intended to showcase the variety of companies and research institutions here in the Commonwealth, and be an catalyst for outside interest and economic growth.

There are multiple ways to search the map, by overall category, using the filtering tool to narrow by functional areas or through a simple keyword search.

Applied Visual Sciences, Inc. is an image analysis software technology company that has developed intelligent, next-generation imaging analytics and informatics technologies for the extraction, analysis, and detection of objects-of-interest within any digital image format (still or video). APVS’s portfolio of technologies, and product applications, address the physiological shortcomings of human vision by providing enhanced visualization, quantification, material and tissue characterization, and automated target detection and identification capabilities. APVS’s technology can analyze digital images from any originating optical source.

The Excel Group of Companies, including Excel Courier, Inc. and Excel Logistics, provides full-service courier, logistics and warehouse facility services to customers throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. In business for over 25 years, Excel Courier, Inc. has a fleet of a wide range of vehicles from compact cars to tractor trailers to handle any package from the size of an envelope to a tractor trailer load with door-to-door service and custom scheduling. Excel Logistics provides full-service logistics, warehouse facility services.

J.A. Lindeman & Co. PLLC is an established intellectual property law firm offering seasoned patent law experience working with clients to successfully develop, commercialize and defend their patent portfolios. Some clients do business in a wide range of industries including chemical, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, computer systems, information processing, and manufacturing.

Congratulations to Nicole Hastings, VP Operations, HemoShear, LLC, and her husband Adam on the birth of their daughter Vera Lynn Marie Hastings. Vera was born on April 13; weight 8 lbs 14 oz, 21.3 inches.Mark Herzog, Vice President of Corporate Affairs at kaléo and former Virginia Bio executive director, received his MBA from the VCU School of Business. Mark is grateful for the support of his family and employers, current and former, who supported him during the two year program.Edward J. "Ned” Kelly, III has joined the Focused Ultrasound Foundation Board of Directors. A seasoned executive in global banking, Mr. Kelly will advise the Foundation in strategic fundraising and facilitation of new engagement.Jeff Lindeman of J.A. Lindeman & Co. PLLC contributed the chapter "Patenting Amorphous Solid Dispersions of Pharmaceuticals” to Pharmaceutical Amorphous Solid Dispersions, (A. Newman ed., John Wiley & Sons 2015). Jeff had previously co-authored "Co-crystals: Commercial Opportunities and Patent Considerations,” in Pharmaceutical Salts and Co-crystals, (J. Wouters and L. Quéré eds. 2012).AIBioTech adds Theon Loving as their new Quality Assurance Specialist. Loving will have the duties of QA oversight of the work conducted in the laboratories for contracted research under GLP conditions. Theon is a graduate of Virginia State University with a degree in Physics and has over 7 years in the Quality Assurance field in addition to working in the laboratory.

Virginia Bio would like to thank our long term members who have recently celebrated their membership anniversaries:

BIOLOGICS CONSULTING GROUP - 19 YEARSREVIVICOR - 19 YEARSWAKO CHEMICALS - 19 YEARSMERCK - 18 YEARS
SYNTHONICS - 18 YEARS
ATTENTION POINT - 5 YEARS
Virginia Bio would also like to thank our members renewing for the first time:

JUNE 4Event: Biotech and Beer Networking ReceptionWhere: VCU Bear Hall Lawn, Richmond, VAWhen: Thursday, June 4 5:00 pm - 7:00 pmDetails: Enjoy snacks and beverages with your colleagues from across the state while talking about the latest events in life science.
Registration: Click here to register.JUNE 15-18Event: BIO International ConventionWhere: Philadelphia, PAWhen: Tuesday, June 16 - Thursday, June 18Registration: For more BIO convention information click here.JULY 24Event: Biotech and BeerWhere: LifeNet Health, Virginia Beach, VAWhen: Friday, July 24Details: More information coming soon.NOVEMBER 18Event: TEDMEDLive StreamingWhere: Live StreamingWhen: Wednesday, November 18Details: Due to an exciting partnership with TEDMED and Virginia Bio, TEDMED would like to invite you to join in on this year's event where we will Unlock Imagination in the service of Health and Medicine. We encourage you to convene and share in free online access to TEDMEDLive Streaming 2015, comprising of more than 70 talks from transformative thinkers in health and medicine.Registration:Click here for additional information.ABOUT VIRGINIA BIO
Virginia Bio, was formed in 1992 and incorporated in the Commonwealth of Virginia as a non-profit association. The purpose of the Association is to promote the biotechnology industry in Virginia, expand the knowledge and expertise of Virginia's businesses concerning biotechnology through seminars, educational publications and other means, to enhance public awareness of the biotechnology industry in Virginia and the scientific, economic and other benefits it provides, and to represent the interests of the biotechnology industry in Virginia before federal, state and local legislators and regulators. We provide a forum for members and their guests to get to know each other and the many bioscience companies operating today in Virginia and serving our biotech community. We coordinate information among the many agencies and organizations interested in biotechnology.

To learn more about Virginia Bio and how you can get involved, Click Here

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